Post-Show Discussion Activity

Use these questions to reflect, discuss, or journal about your experience and reactions to Gem of the Ocean. Explore any of the questions that interest you.

If engaging in this activity independently, consider taking notes or writing your reflections down. If engaging in this activity with a class or group, decide if you would like to answer every question in order, skip around, or select certain questions to spend time on. 

Discussion Questions

1. In what ways do spirituality and Christianity intersect and interact in this play?
2. How are the effects of slavery and Reconstruction persistent in both the foreground and background of this play? 
3. How do you understand the City of Bones? What significance does it hold for the characters as individuals and as a community? 
4. In Gem of the Ocean, only Black Mary and Caesar are related by blood, and yet the bonds between the residents of and around 1839 Wylie Avenue are rock solid. Why and how do you think that chosen family has such an important role in this small community? 
5. Early in the play, Aunt Ester speaks of the death of Garret Brown as a lonely death: “Wasn’t nobody but him. All them people standing around watching and he was the only one who died.” In what ways is death a communal event? In the play and in your life, how does death become less lonely? 

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• This activity aligns with the following standards:
  • Illinois Arts Learning Standards 
    • Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.
    • Anchor Standard 8: Construct meaningful interpretations of artistic work.
    • Anchor Standard 11: Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen understanding.
  • Common Core State Standards 
    • CCSS.ELA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
    • CCSS.ELA.RL.3  Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
      

Posted on November 5, 2025 in Learning Guides, Productions